At 18, Becket Kiernan was a driven young man with a big heart, great smile and infectious laugh who was living the life he always wanted: as a Marine.

Kiernan, who was from Rochester, died suddenly Feb. 5 at Marine Corps Base 29 Palms in California from an aggressive bacterial infection called Necrotizing Fasciitis, according to a Facebook post by his mother, Lynda Kiernan.

“All Becket ever wanted since he was young was to be a Marine and to help people, and we are so proud of him,” his mother wrote online. “There are no words yet created to express how my heart is broken.”

The 2017 graduate of Old Rochester Regional High School, thrived in the environment of the Fall River Young Marines, a coed, youth organization for boys and girls, ages 8 to 18, earning high praise from adult leaders…”